Rd 2 WR target: Braxton Miller Ohio State. Thoughts?

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FrantikRam

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I don't know Miller's injury history, other than his shoulder. He wasn't, however, in WR shape to play the reps that he did at the Senior Bowl. He did play every rep at 100% though. Remember, the team lost two WR's, which put a lot of extra reps on the WR's, on day 2.

Can you enlighten me of his injury history?


It's not stuff that would be reported necessarily....dings that cause him to miss a play here or there, or miss a series. You'd have to have watched every OSU game that he played to know what I mean....I'm not going to pretend that I know more than NFL scouts/personnel, but given how much he got dinged at the college level, it'd make me very nervous that those could turn into more serious issues when taking hits from NFL players.

Had the exact same concern about Ryan Shazier, and although he's shaping up to be a fantastic player, has missed significant time thus far.

I think Miller will be a late 2nd/3rd round pick by a team with a good passing attack in place.
 

LACHAMP46

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He has talent....But not sure we should invest in a player like him at this moment....Maybe if we traded back, and got an extra 3rd..
 

tahoe

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For some reason i think he will end up being a star. Yeah he is raw but he is smart and you cant teach that athleticism. I could be wrong but i think he will be worth the risk.
 

Merlin

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For some reason i think he will end up being a star. Yeah he is raw but he is smart and you cant teach that athleticism. I could be wrong but i think he will be worth the risk.

He does have star talent I think. If I wasn't worried about him getting hurt and if he was more polished I'd be all over him. But those two things plus the Rams' history with 2nd round busts and guys who impress in workouts makes me very leery. If he's there in round 3? Then yeah, you gotta take a flyer on him most likely but it depends on who's left on the board too.
 

DaveFan'51

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Braxton has serious talent but he's not the right pick for the Rams. We need guys that can come in and make an immediate impact. Braxton is a risky pick that will need time to develop.

In Round 2, we're going to have a shot at guys like Tyler Boyd, Sterling Shepard, and Leonte Carroo. All three are surer bets (if Carroo's character checks out) and more prepared to make an impact as a rookie.

Also worth mentioning, the Rams reportedly met with Braxton Miller this week.
Right now Braxton Miller is rated as a 2nd or 3rd round pick, but the way he's climbing the charts He may wind-up a Late 1st rounder!
Especially with his uses as a return-man and, IF someone is prone to have a surprise play here and their, Like Fisher, He can throw a Pass too!? We do have two picks in the 2nd to work with if we want him!
 

jrry32

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For some reason i think he will end up being a star. Yeah he is raw but he is smart and you cant teach that athleticism. I could be wrong but i think he will be worth the risk.

Not for a team that needs immediate impact and has better options. Worth the risk for a team like Green Bay or Dallas? Sure. But not for us.
 

LACHAMP46

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More Braxton....Man I wish we had addressed wr a lil heavier....I'd love to stash this kid on the roster...

http://mattwaldmanrsp.com/2016/02/04/integration-projection-and-evaluation/

Integration, Projection, and Evaluation
by MATT WALDMAN

Integrating layers of information is vital to good player evaluation. An example of studying Braxton Miller reveals why.

There are very few skill players I haven’t seen before I got to Mobile, but my first look at Braxton Miller came at the Senior Bowl last week. Waiting on Miller was by design.

The former Buckeye quarterback has only played wide receiver for a season. In these cases, I’d rather watch where he is now and work backwards. An all-star game environment provides a basic framework for seeing things that Ohio State didn’t demand of Miller.

Not that this was a vital strategy–if you watch enough of a player, you’ll eventually learn what the field can teach you–but it underscores that evaluation is about taking layers of information and integrating them into an analysis that also helps you project what that player isn’t doing right now.

You can say Corey Coleman fared well against press coverage against West Virginia and not so well against Oklahoma State, but if you don’t have a good reason why then how does that help you project his future against NFL press coverage? You need multiple layers of viewing experiences for a player–not as many as some claim–but enough to know how a scheme or opposition limits what you’re going to see from him.

Last night, I posted a RSP Boiler Room video breakdown of a deep route where Miller could not reach the pass. My analysis concludes that Miller wasted steps on the route because he didn’t attack his stem with the right kind of aggression and he initially tracked the ball over the wrong shoulder. These two displays of inexperience cost the new receiver a chance to make a viable play on the target.

Later in my film study, I encountered a similar route from the Virginia Tech game above, which is also from slot right. Despite facing coverage inside, Miller chooses to track the ball over his inside shoulder. The result is impressive, but the process isn’t one you can count on for a receiver to replicate consistently.

Miller’s choice of shoulder to track the ball opens his catching technique to the coverage, which is unnecessary. The choice of shoulder also forces a tougher adjustment and Miller nearly drops this ball.

The decision stems from Miller’s lack of experience. He’s still learning to integrate what he sees on the field with what he’s supposed to do and there are several layers of information he must process:

The position of the coverage to the inside. The fact that his quarterback is also delivering the ball based on the location of the coverage. How much separation Miller earns after his stem. The actual trajectory of the ball versus his expected location of the ball. And if any defender is peeling off his primary coverage into the area that may contest Miller’s effort.

Miller’s efforts to execute with these factors as drivers while doing it at the highest level of college football for the first time ever is admirable, but he’s a novice at the craft of route running and it shows.

If Miller tracks the ball over his outside shoulder, his turn to the ball wouldn’t be as difficult, he places his back between the defender and catching process, and Miller likely catches the ball in stride. I don’t know about you, but I’d like to see Miller have easier catches where he can use his legs in the open field afterwards.

Because Miller tracks the ball to the incorrect shoulder, he’s also forced into making the catch with a passive hand position. Now he’s waiting on the ball rather than attacking it.

I’ve seen Miller attack the ball in practice. I’ve seen him win the ball and take a hit. But if my only perspective prior to practices was the Ohio State tape, I might have concluded that Miller was by nature a passive catcher of the football.

I might have assigned him an issue that he lacks. His overall grade on my board might suffer. Where I think he’d be best matched with a scheme might change.

The eye in the sky may not lie, but it only sees what a player and team shows it. Miller and the Buckeyes didn’t always show the tape that he could attack the ball with ideal technique. Practice did, because Miller encountered more route variations at the Senior Bowl than he did on the field as a slot receiver and part-time runner/quarterback this year in Columbus.

Because I saw Miller first at the Senior Bowl practices, I could view the Virginia Tech and Rutgers games with added perspective. Miller’s hands and technique for using them are fine. His pass-catching suffers because he’s not recognizing what to do so he’s in the best position to maximize those techniques.

This thought process is an example of integrating the data/information one collects on a player. A scout who integrates the correct information into cogent, meaningful analysis tells his team that Braxton Miller will unlock some NFL starter abilities as a ball catcher and runner in the open field once he learns how to get open and maximize his position to catch the ball with good technique that he already possess.

Less integrated analysis leads to a team thinking that Miller has issues with his hands and that’s a more fundamental problem than issues with routes.

As well as Ted Ginn has performed for the Panthers this year, he still drops too many passes and a lot of his success is attributable to Cam Newton not shying away and the Panthers defense giving the offense enough opportunities to recover from dropped balls. Compare Ginn to other starters in the NFL and he’ll be near the bottom of the list and he’s still considered an over-valued draft pick. Fortunately, any player carving out a respectable NFL career is an accomplishment and if you’re not blind to that important dose of perspective, you can appreciate that fact.

Miller does not want to be comped to Ginn in terms of hands, because it will lower his draft value. Not all teams integrate analysis well with every player. Wide receiver already has the greatest variation of draft grades every year, there are likely some teams that will have a much lower grade on the Ohio State receiver than others. Most of it will likely be due to need and scheme fit, but there will be some teams that didn’t integrate their analysis well enough.

If Miller develops, some of those teams will be wondering why they passed on him and if the first thought is we saw problems with him as a pass catcher, they will be wrong.
 

ReddingRam

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He needs some work on routes, most WR's in college do. I can tell you this, he was, in my eyes, the best offensive, quick twitch, athlete on the field during the Senior Bowl practices. He has good hands, he competes, he's smart. As long as we sign a FA at the position too, I'd have no problem taking him in round 2, if he's the best available.

I think he will be a very successful WR in the NFL.
What about signing Marvin Jones and drafting Miller in Rd.4 or later?
 

jrry32

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What about signing Marvin Jones and drafting Miller in Rd.4 or later?

Miller has to be around in the 4th round for the plan to work. But I'd still do things differently. JMO.
 

Elmgrovegnome

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If we have the ability to develop him I would take him. Maybe not as high as the second though. Rough game today with a drop and some poor route running, but he's like Tavon lite. Just needs to learn the position more which depends on how much he wants to succeed.

No way. After the Brian Quick experiment I don't want the Rams to ever use a second round pick on a WR that is 'raw'. Miller is a great athlete but how many years do we wait for him to develop the polish needed to excel in the NFL? The Rams need producers now. I don't think I would want the Rams drafting him at all right now. I believe they need a QB, WR, TE, DE, and MLB. With six picks they don't have much room to take a chance on upside. He may one day be very good and if the Rams were a finished roster sure, but still not with a second. He looks like a mid third to mid forth rounder to me.
 

DaveFan'51

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Miller might be a good pick w/our 2nd #2 pick or our 3rd round pick, but not our #1 2nd rounder! He has too much to learn about route running in my book!
 

Merlin

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Miller might be a good pick w/our 2nd #2 pick or our 3rd round pick, but not our #1 2nd rounder! He has too much to learn about route running in my book!

I'd take him in the third round if he's there, but it also comes down to what have you drafted to that point? Way I see it right now making my best guess as to what needs will match up with availability per round...

1. QB (move up likely)
2. WR / TE / MLB
2. WR / TE / MLB
3. WR / TE / MLB
4. C / K
6. C / K

So in the above if they get Boyd with their first pick in round 2, do they want to burn that third round pick on a project WR instead of a MLB like Scooby? Also if they move up for a QB there's a good chance one of those round 2 picks is gone. When I look at their picks against needs (QB, WR, TE, MLB, C, K) things get tight if the WR they draft is a project. Big concern for me man, I want a WR who can be counted on by our QBs to be in the right spot and to catch the ball.
 

DR RAM

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Big concern for me man, I want a WR who can be counted on by our QBs to be in the right spot and to catch the ball
I was all for him after watching him practice all week, but then, you could see how raw he was in the game. He truly is an incredible athlete, and I think he will get there, but what you said would be my main concern too, and because of everything that has happened to our WR's recently, we need to get someone more polished, and we need to sign a FA.
 

jrry32

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CBS Sports' Dane Brugler believes South Carolina WR Pharoh Cooper is a superior prospect to Braxton Miller.

Brugler admits he is likely higher on Cooper's game than most and considers him a top five receiver in the class. The South Carolina product has started to receiver more buzz as evaluators dive into junior tape. Cooper virtually carried the South Carolina passing game for a couple of seasons and was used both outside and inside, displaying skills in both spots. He's an explosive player who could see his early snaps inside.
 

DR RAM

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He intrigues me. I will watch more of him.
 

FrantikRam

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I am in no way advocating this but...

The only way us taking Braxton makes sense is if we decided to move Tavon for a 1st round pick, then take Braxton in the 2nd round. He has the best moves I've seen coming out of college since Tavon, and with his frame has the potential to develop into a better WR. Worst case we could use him exactly how we used Tavon, although I think Tavon has superior vision and probably has him in the speed department too. Not to mention that Tavon's size allows him to be even more elusive.

Again, I wouldn't do it. But trading Tavon for a 1st that would allow us to trade up to get the QB we want and still landing, say Tyler Boyd and Braxton with our 2nd round picks...

Again, not saying I would do it....but IMO it's the only way taking Braxton would make any sense.
 

ReddingRam

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Seems that Rams might have already done this thru another method ... signing Kain Colter. Another ex-QB -turned WR quick twitch athlete who might add more versatility to their offensive playbook.